Cleansing compositions specifically tailored for hair are routinely utilised, typically, on a daily basis. When cleansing human hair, a cleansing composition, or shampoo, is typically dispensed from the packaging and applied to pre-wetted hair. The cleansing composition is rubbed into the hair using the hands and distributed to all hairs that require cleansing. Through dissolving in water and the rubbing action of the hands, a lather is formed. When lather is formed, due to the formation of air bubbles, the volume of the cleansing composition increases and so it can be spread across the whole head of hair more easily. Lather is an important indicator to consumers that cleansing is occurring. After allowing the cleansing composition to cleanse the hair, which typically lasts from a few sec to a number of minutes, the composition is rinsed from the hair using water.
There is a correlation between the surfactant parameters that drive good cleansing (e.g. packing at interfaces, ability to aggregate) and the ability to form lather. There is a need for a surfactant that will go to the air-water and soil-water interface very quickly, which comes from the packing of the surfactant molecules e.g. at the interfaces. Branched surfactants go to these interfaces quickly and efficiently because they are in monomeric form as result of their more loose packing (due to branches) and hence are not part of a big aggregate, which needs to get broken down in order to reach the interfaces. However, tight packing correlates with good lather quality. Critical micelle concentration (CMC) correlates with speed of lathering because micelles are less tightly packed, but this also correlates with lower lather quality. A downside of having tightly packed micelles (low CMC), which need to be broken down, is slow lather and therefore slower cleansing.
As the human population increases and societies become more highly developed, which typically results in increased demand, the availability and costs of basic resources such as water increase. Furthermore, in some parts of the world, for example those close to the equator, water is always in relatively short supply. There is a need, therefore, for providing methods to cleanse hair that can be used when water is in short supply or is relatively unaffordable.
In order to use less water for cleansing hair, the composition should be able to dissolve in less water than required for conventional compositions. Furthermore, it should form a lather when less water is utilised. Moreover, less water should be able to be used in order to rinse the composition from the hair. In modern times, there is a desire for daily household tasks such as cleansing to be made as fast as possible. In the context of a composition for the hair, this requires faster dissolution (dissolving) time, faster lather formation, and/or faster rinsing. Finally, there is a need to find cleansing actives which can be derived from natural and renewable sources.
The use of branched compounds in cleansing compositions are already known e.g. WO99/18929; WO2005/009385; U.S. Pat. No. 6,150,312; WO2009/090617; WO2009/053931. None of the existing art provides all of the advantages and benefits of the present invention.